I was recently in Cabo San Lucas. Our timing in Cabo coincided with Jeffery Cowart’s Help-Portrait Project. The Help-Portrait Project is Jeffery’s “once a year” global initiative to bring family portraits to families and individuals who would otherwise, because of limited means, never have an opportunity to have a family portrait made. It’s a great project and this was the second year we were working with missionaries in the area and photographing in the impoverished barrios of Cabo.

Image editing applications for the iPad and iPhone have been gaining ground over time. But until recently, the top editors were from third party developers such as NIK; whose SnapSeed App won Apple’s “Best App for the iPad” last year. Recently the big names have released advanced image editors for iOS, so its time to take stock of how these Apps measure up, and what they have to offer.

The SpyderGALLERY* application will soon be available for Android devices. Right now we are making the finishing touches on the app. This is the moment in which YOU can take the opportunity to be a part of the Datacolor product testing team. Apply now to become a possible SpyderGALLERY tester! Requirements: Any device running Android Honeycomb OS or higher; any Spyder3 or Spyder4 colorimeter. Interested? Send an email to betainfo@datacolor.com.

Increasingly photographers are turning to iPads as an alternative to printing paper portfolios or showing proof prints. Images nearly jump off the high-quality display and the benefits in terms of flexibility are obvious and substantial. But the iPad doesn’t offer any way to calibrate or profile its display — meaning there isn’t any built-in way to ensure accurate color. This has left most of us mumbling vague apologies in advance when about to show off our latest creations on an iPad or iPhone.

As photographers, more and more of our images never make it to paper. They are seen online, often in a slideshow. Of course, slideshows have gotten a lot more complex than dropping some of our “as shot” slides in a carousel. With that complexity comes a host of new problems – first and foremost among them the accurate reproduction of color in a variety of challenging situations. Most projectors and HDTVs don’t do a great job of truly representing the color in our images to begin with, so they need all the help they can get from us.

As with most of color management, there isn’t any simple way to ensure that your images are seen the way they are supposed to look on every possible device, but with the right tools and some careful planning, you can greatly increase your likelihood of success.

There has been much discussion of the new color scheme in iOS 7. While many users are pleased with the new features and functions of the latest Apple Mobile update, there is less enthusiasm for the color choices. One common complaint is that it makes iPhones and iPads look like Android devices. Perhaps there is something behind that idea. To find out, lets start by taking a look at how Android devices deal with color.

Android has a much wider array of screen types than iOS, and many device vendors add their own elements into the mix. In order to make an Android device stand out from the pack, vendors have been using an approach similar to the Torch Mode trick used with TVs and Computer displays. Torch mode is the nickname for setting a display to maximum brightness, and manipulating other controls to assure that a display stands out in a crowded showroom. Accuracy is not the goal here; being seen is the only intent. That’s why it’s important to calibrate TVs and computer displays after purchase.